The Crusades were one of the most significant events after the year 1000. There were eight Crusades in all, from 1098 and 1270. But even after this period the Crusade continued to be a goal and project that mobilized emotions and resources in Christian Europe. The "later Crusades", as they've been called by historians, were numerous: more than ten up to the Battle of Lepanto (1571). And they all resulted in defeats for the armies of Christianity, engaged against the overwhelming onslaught of the Ottoman Empire in Balkan Europe. This book is an account of the incessant Crusade attempts that were enacted in the 15th century, starting with the bloody Battle of Nicopolis (Bulgaria) in 1396, the greatest defeat ever inflicted upon a Christian army, and up to the Siege of Otranto in 1480.

Marco Pellegrini teaches Modern History and History of the Renaissance at the University of Bergamo